First of all, the creepy Raina, played by Ruth Negga, is back for next week’s episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and, as usual, she’s playing both sides against the middle. Apparently she was less a fan of HYDRA than of Garrett, hence the conflicting loyalties. But just as interesting as the character we know is returning is the one who might be right behind her.
A fan looked at the huge map from the first episode for any Easter Eggs, and found a rather large one. As Haven Comics breaks it down, it looks quite a bit like HYDRA is active in Wakanda. Add that in to the fact that Black Panther has been hinted at for a while now, with signs pointing to his turning up in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron.
This raises the question, of course, whether this is just a nod for fans or whether the show will pay this off later in the season. My gut tells me they pay it off, even if it’s just the Son of Coul visiting the Wakandan Embassy or something. Marvel doesn’t want to integrate this show too tightly with the cinematic universe, but there also has to be a reason for it to be connected at all. Besides “Meet the Newest Avenger, ONLY ON ABC!” is the kind of stunt that keeps network executives awake at night with glee, so at the very least, they’re going to try.